


Good Help

by LonghornLetters



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alexander Pierce is a garbage human being, Beverages as analogies for control, How Captain America: The Winter Soldier should have ended, Justice for James Buchanan Barnes, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-17 18:14:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29229801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LonghornLetters/pseuds/LonghornLetters
Summary: What if Nick Fury hadn't shot Alexander Pierce during the Battle at the Triskelion.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 16





	Good Help

**Author's Note:**

  * For [justanotherrollingstony (adoctoraday)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/adoctoraday/gifts).



> Based on the lovely Stella's prompt "You're not worth the price of a bullet."

Alexander Pierce picked up the photostatic veil Natasha had dropped, slipped it over his face, then walked calmly out of the Triskelion. He made it all the way down to the subterranean parking levels, slid into his car, then nodded at his driver to take him home.

At the house, he frowned at the shoddy job the new maid had made of his kitchen. Maybe Renata’s eavesdropping hadn’t warranted a bullet to the head if that now meant he had to deal with streaky floors and fingerprints still on his appliances. 

He sighed. Good help was so hard to find these days.

After setting the oven to preheat, he just let himself peer into the refrigerator for a moment. Tonight might be a drink with dinner sort of night. If that was the case, water first. No sense in actually looking like he’d lost a few billion dollars worth of technology and had his infiltration of the top spy organization uncovered all in a single day afterall.

At least Graciana had refilled the Brita. 

A full glass. No need to remind anyone tonight that he could do what he wanted when he wanted. He settled at breakfast nook, phone in hand to try to get his email under control while he waited.

A sharp glint distracted him from his screen, and when he looked up, the Asset was sitting at his table, stone still.

“I see today wasn’t a total loss,” he said, a thin smile on his face at the Asset’s continued compliance. He waggled his mostly-full glass at him. “Drink?”

The Asset didn’t even blink. Just continued staring impassively at him. 

Pierce tilted his head. Never let it be said the Russians skimped with their training.

“Your continued presence in the field is worthwhile while we...recalibrate.”

The oven beeped, signalling it had finished heating.

Pierce stood, leaving his half full glass on the table.

The Asset stood with him.

A flash of metal, and the Handler sagged into his arms, hot blood coursing between them.

“You weren’t _worth_ the price of a bullet,” Bucky hissed in his ear as pulled the knife out of the Handler’s gut and let him slump to the floor, propped up against the kitchen island.

Bucky picked up the half-finished glass of water, dumped it over the body, then smashed the glass on the floor while the Handler watched him as his last breaths gurgled out of him.

When he walked out the front door, Bucky Barnes didn’t look back.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay okay, SO, I'm putting these down here because spoilers.
> 
> I firmly believe that whole ass scene in the kitchen in Captain America: The Winter Soldier is all about control. Pierce drinks that milk because he can, and he offers it to Bucky because he's trying to *prove* Bucky has literally zero autonomy.
> 
> Also, to quote my lovely Stella "Fury does shoot Pierce at the end of Winter Soldier, but it should have been Bucky. And that's the tea."


End file.
